New Garden!!

[bean fingers]

Wahay I've got a new house with a brilliant old cottage garden. The lady has let the garden go downhill a bit. But we are completely new to gardening but really want to grow fruit and veg.

It has loads of blackberry bushes along the border, so do we chop them back and try to train them or are they just basically weeds now. Also some raspberries and strawberries growing low level. Should we try to train them? I'd love to have berry bushes.

She has 4 raised veg beds with nothing in them now and a cold frame and two light sheds. So I'd like to sow seeds over winter but have never done before, so what should we start with this winter? And what she we prioritise to do with the beds?

Basically, we are clueless so any advice/ideas would be brilliant!??

Thanks in advance.

[Pot man UK]

If you know what the black berries were like and if they we're good then yes, cut them back and train new growth next year. Blackberry bushes are tough and will come back very well next year if you give them a good chop to get them back into shape. The raspberries will need to be cut back in the winter if they are autumn fruiting (i.e they have fruit now) but if they are summer fruiting you will need to cut back the canes that have fruited this year and train the newly grown canes as they will fruit next summer. Strawberries again are very tough so just tidy them up and see how they do next year.

As for sowing, there is just about time maybe to get some over wintering lettuces in and if you can find any brassica such as purple sprouting broc in your local garden centre then they will be good to get in now also. You could also plant garlic but make sure you get some good cloves that are specifically for your climate otherwise the bulbs will be small and dissapointing.

Other wise just tidy things up between now and the spring so when things start growing again you're good and ready.

[MatthewWilliam]

I probably have this

[johntheeng]

What ? No cushions Mathew.

[Jess]

The simple and quick answer is:

For the raised beds plant:- Onion Sets variety Electric and Troy (Red and White respectively), Garlic good variety is Germidour, Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Winter Cabbage and Spring Cabbage.

You'll need to get seedlings for the cabbage's by this late in the season. But your local garden centre should still have some if you go soon.

For the garlic and onions order them from Thompson and Morgan asap.

Cheers,

Jess